Jun 13, 2018
The Mitchell Report: Jays’ best trade chip fires five scoreless frames
J.A. Happ gives up just one hit in five innings of stellar pitching but the Blue Jays still fall to the Rays 1-0 Wednesday afternoon in a 3-0 series sweep by Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. TSN Baseball Reporter Scott Mitchell provides his key takeaways from the game.
J.A. Happ gives up just one hit in five innings of stellar pitching but the Blue Jays still fall to the Rays 1-0 Wednesday afternoon in a 3-0 series sweep by Tampa Bay at Tropicana Field. TSN Baseball Reporter Scott Mitchell provides his key takeaways from the game:
GAME 68, JUNE 13: JAYS at RAYS
RESULT: 1-0 loss (Tampa sweeps series 3-0)
RECORD: 30-38
STREAK: L3
1—Happ continues to boost trade value
J.A. Happ didn’t do himself any favours early in Wednesday’s matinee, needing 30 pitches just to get through the first inning, which put him behind the pitch-count eight-ball for the rest of the day.
But Happ did manage to make it through five scoreless innings before his day ended at 98 pitches, and it was an impressive, although truncated, performance.
There wasn’t a whole lot of swing-and-miss for Happ — just six swinging strikes — but he held the Rays to one measly single to help lower his ERA to 3.48, moving him into the top 20 in that category in the American League.
MLB Trade Rumors’ first power ranking of the top 50 trade candidates pegged Happ as the third-best chip that will be available ahead of the July 31 trade deadline, and it’s hard to disagree with that assessment.
Happ’s strong season should have contenders blowing up Ross Atkins’ phone over the next six weeks, putting the Jays general manager in a position of power leading into deadline with one of the best arms on the market.
2—Power outage for Jays offence
The Jays must have used up all the pop in their bats during a 56-hit barrage in the four-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles, because there was nothing left when they got to Tampa.
Over the final two games of the series, the Jays didn’t have an extra-base hit, managing just five singles Tuesday night and then five more Wednesday afternoon.
It’s not like it was Max Scherzer — who they’ll face Saturday, by the way — mowing them down, either.
On Wednesday, it was the no-name trio of “opener” Wilmer Font, Matt Andriese, and Diego Castillo holding the Jays scoreless long enough for the Rays to scratch a run across in the bottom of the ninth to complete the sweep.
In addition to only 10 singles over the final two games, the Jays were also 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 14 men on base.
How quickly things change.
3—Granderson finding a groove
It remains to be seen if veteran outfielder Curtis Granderson will attract any attention at the trade deadline, but the 37-year-old is starting to turn things around after a tough stretch.
From the first day of May through June 6, Granderson slashed an ugly .139/.277/.228 with just one home run in 26 games, leaving him with a .213 batting average on the season.
Over his last five games, however, Granderson has 10 hits, including a 3-for-4 effort Wednesday, to push his average back up to .253, and his .815 OPS is second on the team to Teoscar Hernandez’s .841 mark.
Last August, the New York Mets parlayed Granderson into prospect Jacob Rhame in a late waiver trade.
4—Jays pitchers not helping themselves
In each of the three games against the Rays, a Jays pitcher was charged with an error.
That may seem like an accidental blip, but it’s actually been a bit of problem for the Jays this season, as Happ’s first-inning fielding error was the 10th miscue by the pitching staff this season, the most in Major League Baseball.
No wonder the coaching staff had all of the pitchers running through some PFP (pitcher fielding practice) drills prior to a game a few weeks ago.
5—Donaldson misses entire series in Tampa
When he left a game in Boston on May 28 with left calf tightness, the Jays originally believed Josh Donaldson wouldn’t even need a stint on the disabled list.
Then, when he was placed on the disabled list a couple days later, Donaldson was adamant he’d be ready to go when first eligible.
That day came and went last Friday, and here we are in the middle of June and Donaldson still isn’t ready.
Running the bases is the step Donaldson’s been trying to complete since late last week, and while he’s fully expected to return Friday, it’s no sure thing until his name is on the lineup card in ink.
UP NEXT: LHP Gio Gonzalez (6-2, 2.65) vs. RHP Aaron Sanchez (3-5, 4.33) on Friday, 7:07 p.m.
VLAD JR. WATCH: Out since June 6 with strained patellar tendon in left knee, Vladdy Jr.’s Double-A slash line stands at .407/.457/.667 with 11 home runs and 55 RBI in 53 games. He’s scheduled to be re-evaluated during the first week of July.